On top of being a greedy SOB, the sheriff is pretty stupid. He could have taken the same money and bought income-producing properties that would have produced sufficient income to pay for that same house...and he’d have kept the properties, which would appreciate and also have increased equity every single month as the mortgages were paid down.
Greedy and stupid...wow, what a combination.
The story goes on to say that this was one of several properties that the sheriff and his wife own. The total worth of their properties is $1.7M.